Happy November! It’s officially turkey season. With Thanksgiving in just a few weeks, you may be planning out the big meal. In addition to turkey and all the trimmings, consider wine as the perfect toast for this popular holiday. To help you, here are delightful wine suggestions for Thanksgiving.
Consider Complement vs. Contrast
A simple yet effective rule: do you want your wine to match the flavors you will be serving, or to contrast? Consider serving both a wine that complements, and a wine that contrasts.
Not even sure what wines complement or which contrast? Remember these simple rules:
- Red wines usually pair well with red meats
- White wines usually pair well with white meats
- Fruit based wines pair well with spicy foods
As always, there are exceptions. But part of the fun is trying out different wines with different meals and discussing the wines with guests. Here’s a helpful tip: buy your wine now instead of waiting until right before Thanksgiving Day. That way, you won’t have to stress and you can take your time to select your wine(s) of choice.
Red Wine: A Holiday Classic
Red wine, especially Pinot Noir, is considered the traditional wine for Thanksgiving. Light to medium bodied with low tannins, this wine pairs beautifully with most Thanksgiving dishes: turkey, stuffing, green beans, and more. With its lower tannins, Pinot Noir won’t clash with, or overwhelm, all the flavors you’ll savor on Thanksgiving Day.
Another wine to try is Zinfandel, a fruitier wine that features cherry, plum, and blackberry. Zinfandel pairs beautifully with richer dishes, such as steaks and pasta. If you’re serving red meats, break out a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, a classic dry red wine that complements burgers, steaks, and roast beef.
Serving lamb or shepherd’s pie on Thanksgiving? Pair either dish with a glass of Merlot, one of the most popular red wines. Medium to full-bodied, Merlot features a smooth taste.
Dessert Wines for Turkey Day
Thanksgiving meals are all about indulgence, so why not indulge in a dessert wine? Just like its name, a dessert wine tastes like dessert. Consider Chocolate Cherry Honey Wine, featuring chocolate and cherry flavors, and serve alongside your favorite Thanksgiving desserts, such as pie and cheesecake. If you prefer sweeter or fruitier wines, consider serving a dessert wine on Thanksgiving Day.
Cheery Fruit Wines for Contrast
Roast turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes present a savory experience. To contrast these flavors, consider fruit wines. Unlike grape wines, fruit wines use fruit for their base. Raspberry wine, banana wine, peach wine: any fruit you can ferment, you can make wine.
For Thanksgiving, cranberry wine remains a popular choice. This wine’s tartness contrasts with savory dishes yet complements sweet dishes such as cranberry sauce and dessert items.
Also consider sangria, a tried-and-true fruit wine. Combining cherries, blood orange, cherries, and lime with red wine, sangria offers a festive tasting experience that contrasts well with roast turkey and stuffing.
Honey Wine for the Dining
Better known as mead, honey wine’s rich honey base provides a soothing taste. You can serve mead warmed, making mead a perfect beverage for Thanksgiving classics, such as roast turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing.
Winter White Wines for Turkey Day
White wines typically don’t come to mind for Thanksgiving meals. However, say you prefer serving poultry or seafood on Thanksgiving Day. This is where white wines step in. Crisp and refreshing, white wines pair with chicken and fish. It’s also worth noting that white wines have lower alcohol content than red wines.
If you plan to serve halibut, or any type of white, flaky fish, consider Chardonnay, a perfectly crisp wine. If you serve roasted chicken, open a bottle of Viognier (pronounced vee-own-yay), a bright tasting wine. Pinot Blanc, with its fruit flavors, pairs wells with seafood dishes and white meats.
Thanksgiving Wine Tasting
Wine tastings aren’t just for summertime vineyard tours. Host your own wine tasting during the holidays. Take inspiration from the suggestions above or ask each guest to bring a different wine. See, swirl, sniff, sip, and savor each wine, and discuss with your guests which wines and pairings they like best. You just might start a new holiday tradition with your family and friends.
This article was written by Leah Campbell for Third Loft Marketing.
